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Anxiety and Sleep
Important Things to Know About
Anxiety and Sleep
How do I stop feeling anxious about my
sleep?
It is important to understand that waking up at night is
normal. Everyone does it to a greater or lesser extent.
Some people remember waking up and may worry about
it. Others do not remember waking up. Worrying about
sleep usually makes the sleep worse. Do not think “I
won’t be able to function tomorrow unless I get back to
sleep”. Instead try: “I’ve been able to function on less
sleep before and I will get by OK again tomorrow.”
Relaxation exercises before going to bed may help. If
sleep anxiety continues, a doctor should be consulted. A
referral to a specialist sleep psychologist may also be
needed.
If you are a ‘worrier’ you are at greater risk of
having insomnia.
•
Worrying about your sleep can make it worse. This
may create a vicious cycle of poor sleep and
worrying.
•
Worrying may disturb your sleep even you if you are
not an anxious person.
•
If you have a regular pattern of poor sleep and
feeling tired during the day, you may feel less sure
of your ability to ever sleep well again.
•
Insomnia that began in a time of high stress might
not go away, even after the stress has been dealt
with.
•
To treat insomnia, one of the main things you should
focus on is being more relaxed and drowsy before
going to bed
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Using alcohol for relaxation may lead to worse sleep.
It is a popular myth that alcohol improves sleep.
Can alcohol help with sleep? Should I
give up caffeine altogether?
Caffeine and alcohol can be bad for sleep. It is important
to have both of them in moderation. This will result in
better sleep quality. However they should be avoided for
at least 4 hours before going to bed. Using alcohol to
relax and de-stress before going to bed will not help your
sleep. It may help to get you off to sleep, but will
interrupt your sleep during the night. Too much caffeine
will make you too alert to sleep well.
I haven’t slept well for years but don’t
think I have anxiety.
Can medication help make me worry less
about sleep?
You do not need to have general anxiety for an overactive
mind to get in the way of a good night’s sleep. It is true
that some people do not sleep well due to stress in their
lives. But others have mostly stress free lives, except that
they worry about their sleep. By itself, this can disrupt the
quality of sleep. You must aim to lower overall levels of
worry or ‘stress’. Being fit and having a healthy diet also
play a part in how well you sleep.
www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au
•
Medicines (e.g. sleeping tablets or anti-anxiety drugs) will
not always work. Their effectiveness decreases with time
and they can be habit forming which makes it difficult to
stop taking them. The best way to lower anxiety about
sleep is to try to alter how you think about sleep. They
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Raising awareness of sleep health
SHF-Anxiety-1111
1/12/11
11:53 AM
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I am having problems with my sleep.
What should I do?
will help you to learn new ways of dealing with being
awake or with being nervous about the night falling.
There are many methods to learn new ways to think
about your sleep, or lack of it. These include Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness. These have
been proven to be effective.
Talk to your GP. There are also sleep specialists that can
help. There are psychologists who are trained to help
people sleep better. They can explain to you about the
mental factors involved. In the meantime:
What can be done about a mind that
doesn’t seem to shut down? I’m not
worrying, just thinking a lot, often about
mundane things.
•
Do not try too hard to sleep.
•
Let sleep come to you when the timing is right.
•
Keep a regular daily routine when possible, with
consistent times for eating, sleeping and doing other
things.
There are many things you can try if your mind seems
overactive e.g. CBT for insomnia and Mindfulness. If you
learn to notice when your mind is racing you can use
methods to relax and aim not to feel too alert or worried.
These can work across the whole day. Most importantly,
don’t do the thinking or worrying in bed. Many people
find that setting aside a ‘worry time’ during the day is
helpful. Choose a time during the day when you are
usually free and do your worrying, thinking and planning
at that time. Bed is for sleep, so if you are not asleep or
likely to fall asleep, it’s not where you should be. Aim to
gently let go of the thoughts and not let them distract
you. This is just like people living next to railway lines
learn to not notice the train noise after a while. It takes
time and practice but can be done.
•
Make sure you can learn or get taught some methods
to relax.
•
Realise that part of the reason why you don’t sleep
well might be that you worry about sleep too much.
•
Don’t blame every little thing that goes wrong on your
poor sleep.
•
Do not lie in bed awake for a long time. Give yourself
about 20 minutes, then get up and go and sit in a
quiet, dark room somewhere, not doing anything,
until you feel sleepy again.
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Know that sleeping tablets are not as helpful as you
might think.
•
Also know that there is a chance that you might
actually be getting more sleep than you think you are.
Can some people suffer from anxiety but
sleep well?
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Make sure you don’t have too much alcohol and
caffeine.
•
See also Good Sleep Habits.
Yes. If you suffer from anxiety it does not mean you won’t
sleep well. Very anxious people can still sleep well and
not feel too tired or sleepy. But if the person with anxiety
starts to sleep poorly, this will make them feel tired. They
can then start to worry about lost sleep. This can set up a
vicious cycle resulting in chronic sleep problems.
Where can I find out more?
http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/docs/ACF1174.pdf
This information is produced by:
Sleep Health Foundation
ABN 91 138 737 854
www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au
Sleep Disorders Australia
ABN 98 075 427 459
www.sleepoz.org.au
Australasian Sleep Association
ABN 32 172 170 561
www.sleep.org.au
A national organisation devoted to
education, advocacy and supporting
research into sleep and its disorders
A voluntary group offering assistance
and support to people and their
families living with sleep disorders
The peak national association of
clinicians and scientists devoted to
investigation of sleep and its disorders
Disclaimer - Information provided here is general in nature and should not be seen as a substitute for professional medical advice.
Ongoing concerns about sleep or other medical conditions should be discussed with your local doctor.
©Sleep Health Foundation, 2011
Sleep Health Foundation
ABN 91 138 737 854
114/30 Campbell Street, Blacktown NSW 2148
T: +61 (0) 2 8814 8655 F: +61 (0) 2 9672 3884
www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au
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Raising awareness of sleep health